Studies Say Husbands Cause Twice As Much Stress For Women Than Their Own Children

Being a mom is a pretty stressful task in itself.No matter how many children you have, running around chasing a tiny human and having to teach them everything about life can give anyone a run for their money. Not only is it stressful just being around a toddler all day, every day, but realizing you can’t speak to them and explain to them that they’re annoying you like you can any other person is downright cruel. Every woman knows that kids just stress us out, even if they don’t mean to.

And, while you probably think there cannot be anything more stressful to a woman than her children–think again. According to a new study, women claim that their sole reason for being stressed to death isn’t just their kids–but their husbands.

The University of Padova conducted a study that involved surveying women who are married with children. Three out of every four women confirmed that they do the majority of the “parenting” in the house, as well as the household chores, cooking, and cleaning. Therefore, the stress comes from their husband’s inability to help out with, well, anything.

As well, researchers found that the majority of men in marriages rely heavily on their wives for support in life. While studying marriages, researchers saw that after a wife’s death, men’s health deteriorates. On the other hand, after a husband’s death, women cope better with depression and stress.

If you’re feeling a bit skeptical, TODAY.com also conducted a survey of their users to ask them if their kids or their husbands are the sole reason for their stress. Over 7,000 moms responded with a stress level of an 8.5/10 (damn), and 46% said that their husbands did cause more stress than their own kids.

Husbands, if you’re out there reading this–help your wife out. Take time out of your day to ask her what she needs help with around the house. Play with your kids when you get home from work so she can have some time off. Take them out on the weekends by yourself so mommy can get a bit of R&R. And, whatever you do, stop demanding dinner be on the table the very second you walk in the door.